LB granted $2.5 million for joint restoration of DeForest Wetlands

The City of Long Beach will receive a 2010 River Parkways Grant worth $2.5 million for the DeForest Wetlands Restoration project, the State of California Resources Agency announced Tuesday.
“The funding will allow the City of Long Beach to bring river wetlands and wildlife back to the County’s Storm Water Detention Basin while still maintaining watershed protection for the local community,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe. “This project will be the longest public open-space project on the Los Angeles River to date.”
The DeForest Wetlands Restoration Project is part of a larger Lower Los Angeles River Parkway Plan that will implement wetlands along the lower Los Angeles River, as a joint project between the City of Long Beach and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works.
South of the project site is Los Angeles County’s recently completed Dominguez Gap Wetlands project. Both projects combined will create more than 86 acres of functional wetland and riparian habitat along the lower Los Angeles River. The DeForest Wetlands Restoration Project is also part of Long Beach RiverLink, a plan to create integrated open space with improved habitat and a recreation network along the Los Angeles River that will connect Long Beach and the natural river systems.
“This is great news for the City of Long Beach,” Mayor Bob Foster said. “By restoring these wetlands, we’ll be adding more open space for the public’s use as well as improving water quality.”